(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a sugar cane harvester having a conveyor device for conveying harvested sugar canes in their stalk direction while holding the sugar canes as thrown down sideways, a defoliating device for scratching off the leaves of conveyed sugar canes, and a conveyor discharging devices for discharging defoliated sugar canes.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
In a conventional harvester of the type above-mentioned, sugar canes are discharged with the leaves remaining as attached to the stalkes, although the leaves have been scratched off from the stalks by the defoliating device. In either case where sugar cane stalks are collected as they are long or as they are cut into short pieces, a great quantity of leaves are mixed in collected stalks, thus requiring much labor in a post-treatment of leaf separation.
It has been therefore proposed to dispose a blower for blowing off attached leaves along the stalk transfer passage from the defoliating device to the discharging device and its rearward portion. However, separation of all leaves including those which wind round sugar cane stalks, requires a large-size blower, which disadvantageously increases not only the initial cost, but also the running cost since the entire harvester body is constructed in a large size requiring a great amount of power.